Press releases

2020/02/06

IN EXCESS OF 100 MILLION EURO WORTH CONTRACTS AWARDED TO CAF IN THE NORDIC COUNTRIES

The Norwegian operator VY has signed an agreement with Euromaint to maintain the fleet to be operated by the Norwegian company for the Bergen Railway in this Scandinavian country for 9 years.

The  Swedish  subsidiary  of  the  CAF  Group  is  the  market  leader  in  railway  maintenance services and components in Sweden, and will contribute with a long-standing experience in the field to conduct most of its operations in Bergen, where a new maintenance workshop is currently being built for the line. 

This contract is a first for Euromaint in Norway where it will conduct its activities hand in hand with VY thanks to both companies' extensive knowledge of local train operating conditions, in addition to cutting-edge efficient and quality train maintenance techniques. 

The Bergen railway line (Bergensbanen) connects Oslo with Bergen. It is the highest railway in Northern Europe and is reputed for having been named one of the most spectacular railway routes in Europe.

Last December VY was awarded the contract to manage the operation of the Bergen Railway lines, with a view towards increasing long-distance, regional and local train traffic, improving regional transport connections whilst also upgrading on-board services. The VY Group is one of the largest transport groups in the Nordic region. Owned by the Norwegian Government, through the Department of Transport and Communications, it operates most of the passenger train services and a significant number of bus services in Norway. 

The  acquisition  of  Euromaint  in  2019  reinforced  CAF  Group's  growing  service  provision business,  and  this  new  contract  will  also  consolidate  the  Company's  strong  foothold  in  the Nordic  market,  where  the  Group  has  implemented  a  considerable  range  of  projects  over recent years. 
 
CAF to supply five additional metro units for Helsinki 

HKL (Helsingin kaupungin liikennelaitos), the company responsible for operating the Helsinki public transport systems has chosen CAF for the procurement of five new M300 series metro units. These will be added to the 20 trains that CAF previously supplied to the Finnish capital Metro system which are currently in service. 

These new 4-car units will be similar to the already existing M300 units, increasing the current Helsinki Metro fleet from 45 to 50 trains as, aside from the 20 M300 CAF-produced trains, 6 M200 series trains and 19 M100 series trains are also currently in operation.  The new trains will span a total length of 90 metres with an approximate passenger capacity of 575. They will be fully accessible from end to end facilitating passenger circulation between cars on route. This operation includes the supply of spare parts in addition to the train units. The trains are scheduled to be delivered over the course of 2022 with a view towards catering for the traffic increase forecast for the first half of the 2020s on the Metro West line towards Kivenlahti. 
 
TMB procures 14 Zero-Emission Articulated Buses from the CAF Group 

On a final note, the Barcelona Metropolitan Transport Company - TMB published yesterday their decision to procure 14 electric bendy buses to Solaris, the affiliate of the CAF Group. This  acquisition  takes  place  in  the  context  of  TMB’s  plans  to  renew  and  environmentally upgrade  urban  buses  in  Barcelona  and  the  City’s  metropolitan  area.  More  precisely,  these new  electric  vehicles  will  add  to  the  transformation  of  the  H16  (Pg.  Zona  Franca  -  Foro  / Campus Besòs) on the first zero-emission line run by the operator. 

The 14 buses to be supplied by Solaris belong to Solari's New Urbino platform, which is 18 meters long and equipped with pantographs for battery charging: rapid on-route charging and slower vehicle charging at the depot. The units are planned to be commissioned for revenue service in the Catalan Capital in early 2021.